Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a printer for printing objects for marking electrical components, comprising a housing, a printing space formed inside of the housing, a printing device, a receiving device for a replaceable magazine for receiving the object to be printed, a control and evaluation unit, and an input and display device, wherein the receiving device can switch between a loading and unloading position outside of the printing space and a printing position inside of the printing space.
Description of Related Art
In industrial and commercial practice, different types of labeling and marking signs are used to label and mark machines, devices, terminals, cables, or conductors. Information regarding the components to which the signs correspond is placed on these same labeling and marking signs. To this end, the labeling or marking signs are placed in a printer with a corresponding printing pattern—usually alphanumeric characters. Different printers with different printing methods are used for marking—for example, inkjet printers, thermal transfer printers, or UV printers. These types of marking printers are, for example, known from the catalogue “Markierungssysteme Werkzeuge Montagematerial, 2013/2014,” pages 28 to 37, from Phoenix Contact GmbH & Co. KG.
In practice, printing objects in card format that have a number of individual marking signs are often used. The printing objects are thereby especially designed as plastic injection parts or as punched plastic parts. In the case of plastic injection parts, which are also called Universal Card Material (UniCard or UC-Material), the marking signs are secured in an external frame via holding strips. After printing, the individual marking signs, which are often used for conductor and cable marking or for terminal marking, can be detached from the frame. In the case of punched plastic parts, which are also called Universal Sheet Material (UniSheet or US-Material), multiple rows of marking signs together form a printing object, whereby the individual marking signs can be separated from one another after the US-Material is printed on.
Additionally, multiple labeling or marking signs can be placed, especially affixed, on a common carrier sheet from which the individual labeling or marking signs can, after marking, be simply removed. Carrier sheets of this type are, in practice, also called label sheets or sticker sheets.
The different types of labeling materials will hereinafter be generally referred to as printing objects or objects to be printed, whereby the printing objects may be composed of different materials, especially different plastics, and have different dimensions, especially different material thicknesses. In order to be able to print different printing objects with different dimensions using a printer, the individual printing objects are deposited or inserted into a magazine appropriate for the printing object in the printer in question. Typically, multiple printing objects can be individually deposited into one magazine, so that the number of printing objects is greater than the number of magazines. If all magazines have the same external dimensions, the magazines can each be inserted into the receiving device of the printer, which can be moved between a loading and unloading position outside of the printing space and a printing position inside of the printing space like a drawer.
Thermal transfer printers have proven to be especially suited for printing of objects of this type. In thermal transfer printing, a special foil coated with a temperature-sensitive ink is passed between the printing object and a thermal printing head as a printing device, wherein the foil can be arranged as an ink ribbon in a corresponding printer cartridge. Thermal transfer printing produces an exact color print and a high printing quality with a high surface gloss level.
The printer in question (which should preferably be a thermal transfer printer) should be able to print a variety of different printing objects. There is thus a variety of different magazines for the printer which can be individually inserted into the receiving device. Furthermore, several different printer cartridges with different ink ribbons can be used.
In the case of a portable thermal transfer printer, known from practice, the housing has an essentially L-shaped housing part and a housing hood that can pivot laterally, attached on the upper side of the fixed housing part. The ink ribbon is arranged underneath the pivoting housing hood, so that an ink ribbon can be inserted or replaced by raising the housing hood laterally. Input of printing parameters and printing data can take place via the input and display device arranged in the fixed housing part. As the input and display device has relatively small dimensions and also few function keys, input of printing parameters and printing data preferably takes place via corresponding software, wherein the input then takes place on an external computer with the help of graphical user interfaces. This type of inputting printing data is very comfortable for the user, particularly since the printing parameters and printing data are often already provided by corresponding printing software packages. In this case, however, an external computer has to be connected to the printer.